1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a method and apparatus for playing a bag toss game having elements evocative of the game of poker.
2. Description of Related Art
Bag toss games commonly referred to generically as “cornhole” are well known throughout the United States, and in particular, in the Midwestern section of the United States. In a typical cornhole game, a board angled from between 20 and 30 degrees to the ground and having a centered hole toward its top is set up a predetermined distance from two or more competitors, who take turns tossing corn-filled bags or similarly-sized flimsy but weighted objects toward the board. The goal of the game is to cause the bags to 1) pass through the hole or 2) come to rest on the board, in order to score points. One way to do this is to toss the bag with an arc such that it passes directly through the hole without significantly striking the board. More commonly, however, a skilled tosser will attempt to toss the bag with somewhat less arc toward a lower area of the board, causing the flimsy bag to flatten against the board and then ride up the gentle slope toward the hole, so that a toss that does not go through the hole will nevertheless come to rest on the board and score points. A toss hitting the upper area of the board but missing the hole, however, will typically slide up and off the board, scoring no points.
Variations on the cornhole game are not uncommon. One attempt at developing a cornhole game suggestive of aspects of poker can be found in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20080042360 to Veikley. In that game, a typical cornhole board has a plurality of holes representing playing card values. For example, a board with five holes could represent the playing card values 10-J-Q-K-A, and a board with seven such holes could add the 8 and 9 values. In each round, a competitor would try to build the best possible poker hands. If five bags are tossed, for example, a competitor could conceivably score five aces, or build a five-card straight. Of course, bags not landing on the board or not going through a hole would not contribute to the competitor's score.
The Veikley approach, while adding a degree of variety to the typical cornhole game, nevertheless suffers from several disadvantages. Most significantly, any given toss going through a hole is no longer visible to either competitor during the round in progress. Because the game of poker involves building hands based upon what cards have previously been obtained, this renders it more difficult for the competitor to remember what previous cards have been scored and which holes it would be more advantageous to aim at. Also, in a typical cornhole game with a single hole, it is relatively simple for the competitors to look under the board after a round to count how many bags each competitor got through the hole. In the Veikley game, however, with its plurality of holes, such an inspection may not clearly reveal which bags went through which holes. Where, as noted above, memories are unclear as to which cards each competitor scored, disputes may arise. When these memory lapses lead to disputes fueled by beverages such as may be provided in the festive environments in which cornhole games are often played, a dissatisfying experience may be had.
Another disadvantage of the Veikley approach is that it uses a standard sized cornhole board at a standard cornhole angle, such as 20 to 30 degrees. This means that a number of tosses that do not go through a hole will come to rest on the board without scoring. This both reduces the possibilities for building a poker hand and obstructs other tosses from going through holes, reducing the possibilities even further. Because poker is a game in which “big hands” make for excitement, use of the typical cornhole equipment is less than ideal.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a variety cornhole-type game, suggestive of elements of card games such as poker, in which the results of all tosses by each competitor in a given round remain visible to all competitors.
Additionally, it is an object of the present invention to provide a variety cornhole-type game with equipment structured such that a higher percentage of tosses will be scoring tosses than in regulation cornhole.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a variety cornhole-type game in which a high-risk, high-reward target is presented.
It is a still further object of the present invention to provide a variety cornhole-type game appropriate for educational settings using mathematical concepts.